Radioactive
by AudiophileChica
Summary: Inspired by "Radioactive" by Imagine Dragons... Deeks's LAPD undercover job doesn't go quite as planned.
1. Chapter 1

Okay, this is the first chapter of either a 2 or three part story. I'll update most likely by the end of the week. Again, the song, the band, the show, and the characters don't belong to me!

Also, reviews are always appreciated!

*** Inspired by "Radioactive" by Imagine Dragons ***

_I'm waking up to ash and dust  
__I wipe my brow and I sweat my rust  
__I'm breathing in the chemicals  
__Uhhh, ahhhhh…_

_I'm breaking in, shaping up  
__Then checking out on the prison bus  
__This is it, the apocalypse, whoa_

_I'm waking up, I feel it in my bones  
__Enough to make my systems blow  
__Welcome to the new age, to the new age  
__Welcome to the new age, to the new age  
__Whoa-o-o-o-o, whoa-o-o-o I'm radioactive, radioactive  
__Whoa-o-o-o-o, whoa-o-o-o I'm radioactive, radioactive_

_I raise my flags, don my clothes  
__It's a revolution, I suppose  
__We're painted red to fit right in, whoa_

_I'm breaking in, shaping up  
__Then checking out on the prison bus  
__This is it, the apocalypse, whoa_

_I'm waking up, I feel it in my bones  
__Enough to make my systems blow  
__Welcome to the new age, to the new age  
__Welcome to the new age, to the new age  
__Whoa-o-o-o-o, whoa-o-o-o I'm radioactive, radioactive  
__Whoa-o-o-o-o, whoa-o-o-o I'm radioactive, radioactive_

_All systems go, the sun hasn't died  
__Deep in my bones, straight from inside_

_I'm waking up, I feel it in my bones  
__Enough to make my systems blow  
__Welcome to the new age, to the new age  
__Welcome to the new age, to the new age  
__Whoa-o-o-o-o, whoa-o-o-o I'm radioactive, radioactive  
__Whoa-o-o-o-o, whoa-o-o-o I'm radioactive, radioactive  
_

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

"That's it, I can't take it anymore!" Sam's sudden outburst in the quiet bullpen earned him confused looks from both Callen and Kensi.

Kensi ventured first. "What do you mean?"

"Deeks!"

Callen glanced around the room cautiously. "Uh, Sam, Deeks isn't here."

Sam gave his partner a withering look. "I know that, Captain Obvious. That's what I'm talking about. It's too quiet."

Kensi tried to keep the grin off her face. "You miss Deeks?"

"Now, I don't know that I'd go that far," Sam said holding up his hands defensively.

Callen sat up in his seat and focused on his partner's face. "You do, don't you?"

"No, I just don't like the change in dynamic when he's gone for extended periods of time."

Shaking his head knowingly, Callen teased, "No, you thrive on quiet. Admit it, Zen master, you miss Deeks."

Sam looked pointedly at both of his co-workers. "Either one of you breathes a word of this to Shaggy Boy, they'll never find your bodies."

"I'm curious, though," Callen commented as he glanced at Kensi. "Why are you so calm about him being gone this long?"

Happy the attention was no longer on himself, Sam joined in. "Yeah, two and a half months is a long time. The longest you've been separated since you became partners, actually. You're usually demanding information after a couple of weeks."

Callen smirked. "What's up, Kens? You know something we don't?"

When the younger agent didn't defend herself immediately, Callen and Sam knew they had struck a nerve.

"Kensi?" Sam lowered his voice to a semi-loud whisper. "You been holding out on us?"

Folding her hands together on her desk, Kensi glanced between the two senior agents. "You're reading way too much into nothing. Nothing is going on," she assured them before returning her attention to her computer screen.

Before either one of them could question her further, Eric bounded into the bullpen, Oreos in hand. "Hey, you guys hear about the explosion?"

Callen responded first. "No, what explosion?"

Eric stepped closer and leaned on the metal fence surrounding the desks. "Chemical explosion in a vacant building at 6th and Santa Fe in the Warehouse District. Haz-mat teams are setting up now."

"The Warehouse District? Was anyone hurt?" Kensi stood up quickly.

Eric shrugged. "Witnesses said there's been some activity there lately, but no reports yet. No one's gotten close enough."

Kensi skirted around her desk and quickly headed for the stairs. "OPS, now!"

Callen's widened eyes followed her for a second before he called out, "Kens, what's going on?"

She stopped on the landing long enough for them to see the color drain from her face. "Deeks was supposed to be in the Warehouse District today." Before she could even finish turning to continue up the stairs, the rest of the team was hot on her heels.

Sam caught up to her just as they entered OPS. "Kens, it's entirely possible that he wasn't there."

Callen came in right behind Eric. "Find everything you can about the explosion." He turned to Kensi. "Are you sure he was supposed to be there today?"

Kensi leaned on the light table and ran her hands through her hair. "I'm sure." When Callen just stared at her, she continued. "We've been communicating for about six weeks. I woke up one morning and found a flyer on my car window. I went to throw it away when I noticed a small note written on the back. It was from Deeks… telling me he was okay." She paused to take a deep breath. "It also had an email address on it," she finished, looking up at Sam and Callen.

"Did he tell you anything about his case?" Sam asked.

"No," Kensi answered, shaking her head. "We just emailed a couple of times a week, just confirmation that we were both okay. But his last couple of emails were a little longer. He mentioned that he was tired and not feeling right. The last one was this morning. He said he had to get to a meeting and that he hated the Warehouse District."

Just then, the OPS doors slid open and Hetty entered, her expression grim. "I've just spoken with Lt. Bates."

"Deeks?" Kensi's tone was quietly hopeful.

"Mr. Deeks was supposed to be inside the building when it exploded, but they lost communication with him a few minutes prior. They still have no confirmation yet either way. Haz-mat teams won't let anyone in yet." She turned to Eric. "LAPD just sent us the case file. Open it please."

As the rest of the team read through and discussed the case, Kensi found her mind drifting. If Deeks was gone, she would know, right? She would feel it, wouldn't she?

'_He's so much more in tune with me than I am with him. I have walls up and he just climbs over them or blows them up completely. He pays attention to things that I don't even know I'm doing and he just files them away in his KENSI file… I don't even have a DEEKS file. I give him so much crap about anything and everything. Have I ever really tried to get to know him? The real him, not just the cocky cop façade he projects. Maybe I wouldn't feel it if he was gone….'_

"Kensi?" Sam asked.

She hadn't even noticed that they had stopped talking and were all looking at her. "I have to go down there," she announced as she brushed past her teammates and out of OPS.

Hetty stared at the doors as they closed. "Mr. Callen, don't let her go alone."

Sam locked eyes with his partner and nodded. "I'll drive," he said before they headed out.

oOoOoOo

Sam pulled the Excursion into the lot across the street from the warehouse and was immediately stopped by an LAPD officer. After showing his badge, he was directed to a parking area and told to ask for Lt. Morrison.

Stepping out of the SUV, the agents simply stood together taking in the scene. Police and fire rescue teams were everywhere, not to mention haz-mat. Callen noticed an officer being pointed in their direction and began walking towards him.

"You NCIS?" he asked, holding out his hand to shake.

"Yes, sir, Callen," he said, grasping the man's hand firmly.

"Kensi Blye."

"Sam Hanna, nice to meet you."

"Brad Morrison. I wish we were meeting under different circumstances," he said, leading them closer to the police action. "I haven't worked with Detective Deeks myself, but I've heard stories."

"Well, I wouldn't believe most of what you've heard. No offense, but LAPD tends to treat Deeks like a thorn in their side," Kensi stated coldly.

"Actually, I was referring to the stories I've heard from the higher ups. Believe it or not, they actually really like Deeks. He's efficient, he's got great instincts, and he's no pushover." He lowered his voice slightly. "It's mostly the smaller fish that don't get along with him. My theory is they're just jealous that he gets tapped for the big cases and actually gets the job done."

Callen glanced at Kensi before turning back to Morrison. "What do you know so far?"

"Detective Deeks apparently had a meeting scheduled for 10am with the main target of his investigation, Patrick Thompson. That was what the whole case has been about, getting a face-to-face with this guy. No one's been able to do it until now."

"So what went wrong?" Sam asked.

Morrison shook his head. "That's where things get spotty. The deal Deeks was making with Thompson was for some stolen chemicals that Thompson was looking to move. LAPD caught a couple of Thompson's guys, flipped 'em for a deal, and made them vouch for Deeks as a high end fence. If you wanted to move something major, quickly and quietly, they made sure he knew Deeks was the guy to do business with." The lieutenant glanced at the rubble across the street before continuing. "Anyway, the meeting was set and everything was looking good. About three minutes in, audio died. They don't know if Deeks knew he wasn't being heard anymore or what. Another five minutes and the whole thing exploded."

"Was there anything in the audio they did get to suggest that his cover had been blown?" Callen questioned.

"Honestly, I can't answer that for sure, but I don't think so. I haven't heard the actual audio myself yet. I was briefed when I got here by the van crew that was stationed around the corner for the meeting."

They all turned to look at the remnants of the warehouse again as Sam asked, "Any word on when we can go in?"

Morrison motioned for them to follow him as he headed towards the bank of tables set up as the command post. "I actually just got word from the haz-mat crew right before you pulled in. The area is clear for the fire department, so they're checking for hot spots right now. We should have an all-clear in the next few minutes hopefully."

"Sir?" A young officer jogged up to the lieutenant and pulled him aside for a moment. When he returned to the agents, his expression was not promising.

"Building's clear of hot spots… but they've found remains."

oOoOoOo

Callen, Sam, and Kensi had all investigated explosions and bombings before. They had all seen firsthand the death and destruction they caused. Walking towards this particular building, however, was completely different.

Lt. Morrison led them towards the rubble as they all put their black gloves on. Two firemen were standing near the remains, waiting for them. "Gentlemen, what have we got?" Morrison inquired.

"From what we can tell so far, looks like two individuals. Too far gone for visual identification, unfortunately."

"Looks like they were the only two in here," the second fireman added.

Morrison glanced around the area. "There's a lot of debris, though. It's entirely possible we may find something or someone else."

Sam stepped over to the body furthest from them and knelt down, examining what he could. "All I can tell is it's a male, maybe 5'10" or so. Can't really tell anything else, though."

After hearing the approximate height of the first body, Kensi stepped over to the other set of remains, Callen following close behind.

"This one's taller," Callen observed.

"6'2"," Kensi stated softly. "Deeks is 6'2"." Her eyes met the senior agent's, silently begging him to tell her it wasn't her partner.

Callen squatted down at the head of the body and checked something on both sides. After a few seconds, he looked back up at Kensi. "He's got an earwig," he said gently.

Kensi closed her eyes. "No… No, no, no, no, no…," she whispered, running her hands through her hair while she paced. "No, I can't do this." Turning her back to them, she quickly headed back towards the street.

"Let her go," Sam directed when Callen started to go after her.

"I don't think she should be alone right now, Sam."

"And if this was about anyone but Deeks, I would agree." Sam paused when Morrison and the firemen walked away to give them some privacy. "But she was finally letting him in, finally opening herself up a little. If this had happened to anyone else, Deeks is the only person that would be able to help her. But this… she just needs to be alone."

Callen stared after Kensi, watching her walk back across the street towards the SUV. "Yeah, I guess you're right," he agreed quietly. "Let's look around some more, see if there's anything that sticks out."

Fifteen minutes had passed and no clues had surfaced, just dust and debris. When one of the firemen called out, they didn't know what to expect.

"Hey, I think we may have found something over here!"

Sam, Callen, and Morrison headed to the northeast corner of the warehouse, furthest from the blast center. The largest debris had landed there, but there wasn't nearly as much fire damage.

They approached the fireman that had called out just as he held up a finger for them to be quiet. Everyone was silent as he pointed at the floor. What they initially thought was just a sheet of metal laying on the floor was actually a door, and something was making a faint knocking noise beneath it.

"It may be an underground storage room or bomb shelter," Sam observed.

Everyone set to work pulling metal, wood, and bricks off the door as fast as they could. By the time they got it uncovered, the noise had stopped. Not knowing who or what was down there, Sam and Callen both drew their weapons.

Luckily, it was unnecessary. The sight that greeted them when the firemen opened the door could only be described as beautiful. Deeks stood in the middle of the staircase grinning like a fool.

The detective had blood running down one side of his face from a gash above his eye, but other than that, he seems to be relatively intact. Sam and Callen both holstered their weapons, grinning widely at their younger teammate.

"You have no idea how glad I am to see you guys," Deeks said as he grasped Sam's outstretched hand for assistance up the stairs. "Thompson's whining was really starting to get to me down there."

Right on cue, Thompson yelled from the room below, "Can I get a little help down here, please?"

Morrison and the two firemen headed down the stairs while Deeks explained what happened.

"Thompson and I were discussing the deal, making arrangements, blah, blah, blah. I asked him if the containers nearby were the ones I would be getting and he said yes, but that he had something new he wanted to see if I was interested in. He told his guys to go down and get one of the containers, but I stopped them. I told him that he could just take me down there instead of dragging one of them up here and wasting time. We had just gotten down there when we heard one of his guys yelling about smoke. We both ran up the steps and that's when the building exploded. It blew the door down on us, hit me in the head, knocked us both down the stairs. I guess I actually kinda landed on him, cause I'm pretty sure I broke his ankle." He chuckled lightly. "Anyway, I was out for a little while, but when I came to, he was whining about his leg, saying we were never getting out of there, we were gonna die down there, etcetera. I knew he wasn't armed, his guys were most likely dead, and I had all I needed for the case, so I told him who I was and what was going on. Broken ankle is now the least of his worries."

Callen and Sam led him over to a large piece of cement he could lean against. "So the two bodies we found near the blast…"

"Thompson's guys," Deeks confirmed.

Sam just stared at the detective, shaking his head. "You keep this up, you're gonna use up all nine of your lives before you hit forty."

Deeks chuckled as he looked around the rubble. "Where's Kensi?"

Callen answered. "The remains were too far gone for positive ID, but one of them matched your size and had an earwig. Since we didn't know there was anyone in here besides you and Thompson…"

Nodding his head, Deeks stood again. "Got it, partner thinks I'm a crispy critter."

"Well, let's go deliver the good news, then get your head checked out… oh, and the gash, too," Sam joked as he clasped the younger man's shoulder.

Approaching the parked SUV, the men could tell no one had told Kensi of her partner's miraculous survival yet. She was sitting on the hood with her feet on the bumper, staring down at her hands.

"Kensi!" Sam called out when they were still about a hundred feet away.

"Not now, Sam," she replied without raising her head.

It was Callen's turn to try. "Kens, there's something we need you to see."

She was sounding more frustrated now. "Guys, I said not now!"

"Third time's the charm," Deeks mumbled so that only the guys could hear him. "Sugarbear, not even for me?" he called out.

Kensi raised her head slowly, not sure if she really heard what she thought she did or not. She took in the torn jeans, the shirt partially untucked, and finally his bloodied face and hair. Her expression was indecipherable as she asked softly, "Deeks?"

He walked towards her, stopping when he was close enough to gently place his hands on the tops of her knees. "I'm here, I'm okay."

Kensi didn't say another word, just wrapped her arms around his shoulders. He hugged her back, savoring the simple gesture, knowing true hugs from his partner were not to be taken lightly.

"You kept your promise," she whispered.

He pulled back slightly to look at her face. "What, to not get myself killed? You know I always keep my promises, Princess." He grinned.

Staring at him for a moment, Kensi just nodded. "Don't call me Princess," she said quietly with a grin.

Deeks smile just grew even bigger. "Come on, let's go get my head checked out so I can go home!" He pulled her off the hood of the SUV and set her on her feet before she could protest.

"So what happened?" Kensi asked as they followed Callen and Sam over to the waiting ambulance.

Deeks just threw his arm over her shoulder. "Tonight. You bring the burgers, I'll supply the beer."

"Sounds like a plan to me."

As they neared the ambulance, Deeks stepped forward to greet the EMT. "Hey, your patient has arrived," he said with a grin.

The EMT stepped down out of the ambulance, looking down at the clipboard in his hand. "Yes, you're Detective Deeks, right?" When he heard no reply, the EMT looked up at Deeks's face. "Detective?"

Being behind their teammate meant they couldn't see his face, but the unmistakable sway of someone about to collapse sent them into action just in time. Kensi watched Sam and Callen catch her partner as he crumpled, unconscious.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Hope you enjoyed! Like I said, hopefully I'll be able to post the next chapter by the end of the week.


	2. Chapter 2

Sorry it took so long for the update, but unfortunately, life got in the way! LoL! Anyway, I know it's definitely shorter than the first chapter, but here is Chapter 2. Remember, I don't own the show, the song, the characters, or the actors. I hope you enjoy, and as always, reviews are infinitely appreciated!

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Kensi's mind was running nonstop as Sam maneuvered the Excursion to follow the ambulance carrying her unconscious partner. None of them understood what had happened to the detective. He had seemed perfectly fine right up until just a couple of seconds before he collapsed. She remembered the looks of confused panic Sam and Callen had thrown her way when they caught Deeks before he hit the ground.

"There's the ambulance bay, turn right up here for the ER entrance," Callen instructed.

Kensi and Callen were jumping out of the SUV before Sam even had it in park, but he wasn't far behind. They ran into the ER and straight up to the desk.

"I'm Agent Callen, NCIS." Callen showed his badge. "A member of my team was just brought in by ambulance. Detective Marty Deeks, LAPD."

The woman nodded. "Of course. He won't be in the system yet, but I'll call back and let them know you're out here."

"Thank you," he said before turning to Sam and Kensi. "Why don't you guys go find a quiet corner or step outside and call Hetty. I texted her that Deeks was alive, but didn't get a chance to update her on anything else."

Just as they turned to leave the room, the girl from the desk called out. "Agent Callen?"

"Did they tell you anything?" he asked as he returned to the counter.

"No, actually, there's nothing to tell because the detective isn't here. No ambulance has brought anyone in, in over an hour, and none are expected. I'm sorry," she said before returning to her desk.

Kensi and Sam stepped closer. "How is that possible? We were right behind the ambulance when they turned into the ER," Sam questioned.

Callen immediately pulled out his phone and called Eric.

"Go, Callen."

"Eric, I need you to pull security video from around White Memorial Hospital for the last fifteen minutes, particularly around the ER ambulance entrance."

"On it. What am I looking for?"

"An ambulance that pulled in and right back out. Get the number of the ambulance and track it with cams as far as you can. Let me know what you find ASAP."

"You got it."

Callen ended the call and turned to Kensi. Noting the look on her face, he stepped a little closer. "Kens, we will find him, you know that. We're not losing him."

The younger agent nodded slightly before turning and stepping out into the afternoon sun. Callen and Sam stared after her for a moment before following her to the SUV to wait for Eric's call.

oOoOoOo

Hetty entered OPS to find Eric and Nell quickly scanning security tapes. "Anything, Mr. Beale?"

Eric continued to study the video on the screen while he explained. "Callen called and said to pull security tapes from White Memorial ER, mainly the ambulance entrance. He said to look for an ambulance that pulled in and out quickly without stopping and to track it and call him. That's all I know so far."

"I've got it," Nell stated.

They all focused their attention on the wall screen as Nell sent the video. The ambulance did enter the bay, but drove straight through to the exit on the side street next to the hospital.

"Ms. Jones, call Mr. Callen. Mr. Beale?"

"Tracking through traffic cams. So far, I see they headed west on 1st Street for a while."

Callen answered Nell's call quickly. "What have you got?"

Nell put Callen on speaker. "Eric's checking traffic cams right now."

"Got it! Looks like they went west on 1st Street, then turned left and went southwest on Figueroa. They're on all traffic cams until West Pico. Give me just a second." Eric pulled up a split screen with several feeds at once. "There, they turned into the parking structure between 11th and 12th."

"Got it! Thanks!"

"Mr. Callen, would you care to explain what's going on? Your text earlier was a bit lacking in details." Hetty's inquiry was anything but a request.

"We found Deeks alive with Thompson in an underground storage room. He had a cut on his head, but seemed fine, otherwise. We got him to agree to see one of the EMTs for his head, but when he got to the ambulance, he collapsed. They loaded him up and said they were taking him to White Memorial. We followed right behind them, but when we went into the ER, they said no one was brought in. That's when I called Eric to have him track the ambulance."

"Very well, Mr. Callen. Bring him home."

Nell ended the call as Hetty turned to them. "Find out everything you can on that ambulance and who might have been driving it. I highly doubt they were real EMTs," she directed as she turned and left them to their work.

oOoOoOo

Deeks could hear voices, but he couldn't tell what they were saying or who they belonged to. He knew he was moving, but he didn't know how or where. He knew his head hurt like hell and his body felt heavy and tired, but he couldn't figure out why or what to do about it. And he knew thinking about what he did and didn't know was making his head hurt worse, so slipping back into oblivion seemed like the plan to go with for now.

oOoOoOo

Kensi didn't pray often. She wasn't one to ask for help from on high. She was a realist. Assess the situation, determine what needs to be done, and do it. Even in most of the dire circumstances she had faced in the past, she had always felt like she had just a tiny bit of control over the outcome. She couldn't help but feel differently this time and it was most definitely not a feeling she enjoyed.

'_Please let him be here, please let him be here.'_

Sam pulled into the parking structure quickly and followed the one way path. It was fairly full, but not packed, so the ambulance would be easy to spot. They had just turned a corner onto the third level when Callen spotted it.

"There! In the corner!"

Sam screeched to a halt behind the parked ambulance as Callen and Kensi jumped out, guns drawn. The inside of the vehicle was dark, so they were going in blind. Callen and Sam went to each side to check the front while Kensi kept her gun trained on the back doors.

"Front's clear," Callen confirmed as they returned to the younger agent.

Kensi swallowed. "Let's do it."

Sam opened the back doors quickly, hoping for the best, but the ambulance was empty.

Callen was on his phone immediately. "Eric, we found the ambulance, but it's empty. Check the cameras at the exit. See what vehicles left after the ambulance pulled in."

"On it."

Callen ended the call and joined Sam and Kensi in their search in and around the ambulance. Kensi spoke up about a minute into the search.

"Guys, I've got blood. Probably from Deeks's head."

The ringing of Callen's phone postponed any further discussion. "What did you find, Eric?"

"No cars left after the ambulance, just two motorcycles."

"Thanks, Eric." Callen turned to Sam and Kensi as he returned the phone to his pocket. "They left on motorcycles, just two of them."

Kensi stared down at the blood drop on the ground. "Deeks is still in here."

Sam looked at the myriad of parked cars in front of them. "The question is where."

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

There you have it, Chapter 2. Like I said, sorry it's so much shorter, but that was the best place to cut it. Hopefully it won't take so long to get the next chapter out!


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